Lennon vs. McCartney: Pandora Pits The Two Music Legends Against Each Other

It's a classic music debate: Lennon or McCartney? Using its Music Genome Project, Pandora has tried to weigh the two musicians' careers against one another.

The Music Genome Project helps recommend music for Pandora listeners by analyzing their listening habits alongside large amounts of historical musical data. In a blog post, Pandora's Steve Hogan breaks down the strengths and weaknesses of the two famous Beatles musicians: Vocal performance? Paul had a better range, John had better special effects. Lyrics? John went for the abstract, Paul is sentimental. The comparisons go on to include melody, rhythm, and instrumentation, but leave the reader hanging with this generic statement:

"So, what do you think? We’d love to hear where you fall in the great McCartney/Lennon debate! Genomic differences aside, there’s no question that John and Paul were two of the most influential pop music songwriters ever."

In Pandora's defense, the Lennon vs. McCartney argument has been beaten to death.

But for what it's worth, even years after his death, the Internet is still far more interested in Lennon:

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The fact that Paul McCartney is still alive, available and conscious to witness the affects that his music has made, along with the fact that he is still touring and sharing his and The Beatles music live to newer generations and old, give his life the plus. Not to say John wouldn't have been doing the same, because I bet he would, Paul happened to make it. Bravo to his performance at Bonnaroo '13, he is still changing lives.

Yeah, sad to say but when Paul dies all of a sudden everyone will start talking about his genius. His talent is undeniable and timeless, as is Lennon's. Luckily, we get to enjoy them both separately and together!